Jason Garrett
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What’s old is new again! Jones loved his former coach so much he brought Garrett on as offensive coordinator before hiring his head coach. Once Garrett ascended to the big chair, Jones gave him an extension after only one winning season. At the end of that contract, Jones didn’t even have the heart to fire Garrett, letting his contract ran out and ambiguity ran wild before the Cowboys started a coaching search that eventually landed them Mike McCarthy.
Garrett amassed a respectable 85-67 record over the course of nine full seasons and had just one losing year, when he lost quarterback Tony Romo for almost the entire 2015 campaign. The biggest problem with Garrett was his playoff success, he went just 2-3 and never made it past the divisional round of the playoffs.
The veteran coach then moved on to be the offensive coordinator for the New York Giants, a gig which he was fired from before he could finish out his second year with the team because the unit was so bad.
Nicknamed ‘The Clapper,’ Cowboys fans never embraced Garrett, but Jones loved him, making him a perfect fit to return!
Eric Bieniemy
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Once considered one of the hottest coaching candidates out there, the offensive coordinator had a long string of success under Andy Reid with the Kansas City Chiefs. Despite having one of the best offenses in the league during his five years with the Chiefs and interviewing for head coaching gigs, he never got offered one.
Bieniemy left Kansas City and became the OC for the Washington Commanders, which saw their offense finish in the bottom third of the league in total yards and points in his only year there.
The veteran coach landed on his feet in the college game, being named the assistant head coach and OC for UCLA in 2024. Under Bieniemy, the Bruins had one of the worst offenses in FBS, scored a measly 18.4 points a game, and he was informed he would not be back after the season.
Jones always seems late to the party and hiring Bieniemy a few years after he was a hot candidate would be very on brand for the Cowboys.
Adam Gase
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Another former hot shot offensive coordinator, but unlike Bieniemy, Gase got his shot at a head coaching job. The OC built his reputation by working with Hall of Fame QB Peyton Manning, who had the best passing season in NFL history when he threw 55 touchdown passes in 2013.
Through Manning’s success and endorsement, Gase was hired by the Miami Dolphins in 2016, where he coached for three seasons and went 23-25, going to the playoffs just once without winning a postseason game.
A few weeks after Gase was fired from the Dolphins, the New York Jets hired the offensive minded coach. In the introductory press conference, Gase had a strange look in his eyes that inspired many memes in his honor, and things got worse from there. Gase won just nine games in two seasons before being fired.
That was the last time Gase held a coaching job of any kind, which makes him perfect to bring out of the woodwork to lead the Cowboys.
Stephen Belichick
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If the Cowboys wanted to hire legendary coach Bill Belichick, but waited too long to pull the trigger, Jones could always do the next best thing and hire his son. Stephen Belichick coached with his dad for 12 seasons as a defensive coach in some capacity before being hired by the Washington Huskies as their defensive coordinator in 2024.
In his only season as a DC in college football, Belichick’s defense was a middle of the road unit that allowed almost 24 ppg, but did finish second in all FBS in passing defense, giving up just 166.5 yards through the air. Belichick followed his father to North Carolina, where he’s currently the defensive coordinator, but he can easily be released from his deal if it means he gets an NFL job. If it fails, the Cowboys use it as a bridge to hire Bill Belichick.
He’s never been close to an NFL head coaching job, but that doesn’t matter. If hiring the dad is off the table, hire the son. It’s worked wonders for Jones and his family.
Jerry Jones himself
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Jones finally gets what he wants and hires himself as the next head coach. Now, Jones can take the unprecedented step of being the owner, GM and coach all at the same time.
He’s mentioned no one else can do as good a job as he’s done as the general manager, now he can take it to the next level. After all, who could possibly be a better option? Jones already has a say in who the team drafts, signs in free agency and plays, why not control the entire empire from the field and make the decisions on game day!
Jones won’t have to make too many adjustments to his schedule either, he already does an interview after the games and twice during the week, so the logistics are all set up.
With this move, Jones gets to control it all, just like he’s always wanted!
